strange stuff

From strange crimes to strange celebrity deaths, read all of the latest weird and strange stuff news stories on Newser.com

Stories 4441 - 4460 | << Prev   Next >>

Can Birdsong Cut Crime?
 Can Birdsong 
 Cut Crime? 
Jan 17, 2012 3:30 PM CST

Can Birdsong Cut Crime?

California mayor says it already has

(Newser) - Crime has dropped in a California town, and residents should be thanking their fine feathered friends, says the mayor. Last year, he began piping recorded birdsong to 70 speakers on a highway. Minor crime dropped 15% from 2010 while serious crimes dropped 6%, the Wall Street Journal reports. It's...

Iran Bans Barbie, Offers US a Toy Model of Downed Spy Drone
Sorry, Kids: Iran Bans Barbie 
Jan 17, 2012 10:04 AM CST

Sorry, Kids: Iran Bans Barbie

But luckily, a replica of the downed US stealth drone will be on sale soon!

(Newser) - As the US tries to crack down on Iran , Iran is doing some cracking down of its own—on that oh-so-American symbol, the Barbie doll. The country's morality police have begun enforcing a Barbie ban issued in 1996. (Authorities blasted the doll's "destructive cultural and social consequences"...

Singer Fined for Bad-Mouthing the Bible

Polish pop star Doda slapped with $1,450 fine for offending religious feelings

(Newser) - A Polish pop singer has been fined for disparaging the Bible. Dorota Rabczewska, who goes by the stage name Doda, said in an interview that she doubted the Bible because "it's hard to believe in something that was written by someone drunk on wine and smoking herbs."...

Nevada Prostitutes 'Pimpin' for Ron Paul'

Clients encouraged to donate to his campaign

(Newser) - The latest group to get into Ron Paul's corner: prostitutes. Working girls at the Moonlite Bunny Ranch, a legal brothel in Nevada, launched a "Pimpin' for Paul" campaign weeks ago that's getting new attention thanks to a recent CNN segment. "If a client comes into the...

Mind-Reading Remote, Other CES Gizmos You Missed

There was more to electronics show than TVs

(Newser) - This year's Consumer Electronics Show had the predictable high-tech TVs and other conventional items—but the 3,100 exhibitors also showed off some rather bizarre devices. A few highlights:
  • Solowheel. An electric unicycle with no seat and footboards that allow riders to stand and lean in the direction they
...

Cops: Man Poisons Rice Krispies to Kill Wife

Fernando Porras busted as he flees from hospital

(Newser) - A California man spiked his wife's bowl of Rice Krispies with enough chemicals to kill her, say Azusa police. Suspect Fernando Porras' 17-year-old daughter called 911 after her mother said the cereal smelled and tasted awful. It had been doused with the household cleaner Goof Off, according to investigators....

Meet the Guy Whose Phone Stopped the Philharmonic


 Meet the Guy 
 Whose Phone 
 Stopped the 
 Philharmonic 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jan 15, 2012 11:56 AM CST

Meet the Guy Whose Phone Stopped the Philharmonic

'Patron X' is very, very sorry

(Newser) - He is identified somewhat ominously as "Patron X" by the New York Philharmonic, the unlucky soul whose phone kept ringing during a performance this week and caused the conductor to stop the show. The New York Times has an interview with the 60-something businessman, who says he had no...

DNA Ties 1991 Murder to 17th-Century Family
 
 DNA Ties 1991 Murder 
 to 17th-Century Family 
in case you missed it
Jan 14, 2012 7:00 PM CST

DNA Ties 1991 Murder to 17th-Century Family

Police believe results will narrow search for Sarah Yarborough's killer

(Newser) - In December, stumped Washington state authorities sent a DNA sample from an unsolved 1991 murder to a forensic consultant in California—and though she didn't return with a match to the murderer himself, she did figure out who his 17th-century ancestors were. The DNA profile closely matched the family...

Thieves Dig 100 Feet to Steal ATM
Thieves Dig
100 Feet
to Steal ATM
Jan 14, 2012 7:15 AM CST

Thieves Dig 100 Feet to Steal ATM

But cash machine contained 'limited funds' at time of theft

(Newser) - Who says the work ethic is dead? Enterprising thieves in Manchester, England, dug a 100-foot-long, 4-foot-tall tunnel under a parking lot, then burrowed through 15 inches of concrete, all in order to steal an ATM machine. The scheme likely took up to six months and in the end it netted...

Need a Facebook Girlfriend? It's Only $5

'Cathy' will post stuff to your wall to impress your friends

(Newser) - There's an easier and cheaper way to make an ex jealous than going outside and finding a real, human girlfriend. For a measly five bucks, you can hire someone to act as your Facebook girlfriend, notes the Washington Post blog . Cathy01, posting on fiverr.com —a site that...

Researchers Name Fly After ... Beyonce

It has a big golden butt

(Newser) - It's been quite a week for Beyonce. First, Blue Ivy and now the honor of having a horse fly scientifically named in her honor. The Scaptia (Plinthina) beyoncea fly hails from Australia, and, crucially, it has a golden rear end. "It was the unique dense golden hairs on...

'Words With Friends' Saves Man's Life

Smartphone game prompts medical discussion

(Newser) - A man in Australia is thanking his lucky stars his wife has a penchant for word games. A few years back, Georgie Fletcher began battling an international opponent she'd never met: Missouri resident Beth Legler. Chatting as they played, the two happened to discuss Fletcher's husband, who wasn'...

Cops Ticket Kid in Toy Motorcycle Accident

6-year-old drives into SUV, mini motorbike impounded

(Newser) - He's only six years old, but he's already tangoed with police for reckless driving. After Gael Noriega plowed into an SUV, police in Mexico ticketed him for the offense, as well as driving without a license and failure to register his vehicle: a miniature motorbike. The small, gas-powered...

Friday the 13th to Occur 3 Times in 13 Weeks
Friday the 13th to Occur
3 Times, 13 Weeks Apart
how freaky
Jan 13, 2012 8:03 AM CST

Friday the 13th to Occur 3 Times, 13 Weeks Apart

First time since 1984

(Newser) - It's not just the Mayan calendar that's raising 2012 worries—our own calendar is stoking fear, too. This year, there are three Friday the 13ths, compared to the usual two. That last happened in 2009. What's even stranger is that exactly 13 weeks pass between the first...

People Left $409K in Coins at Airport Checkpoints

And the TSA is keeping it

(Newser) - Your weird stat of the day, courtesy of the Hill : Passengers left behind $409,085.56 in spare change while going through airport security checkpoints last year. The biggest haul by far came at JFK, where about $47,000 was collected, followed by Los Angeles International ($19,000), Atlanta's...

Hong Kong Stockbrokers Protest ... Shorter Lunch Hour

It's being cut from 90 minutes to an hour

(Newser) - Occupy Wall Street, it ain't. About 1,000 stockbrokers in Hong Kong marched in protest today because their lunch hour is getting cut from 90 minutes to one hour, reports AP . Exchange officials say the move is necessary to bring Hong Kong's trading hours in line with other...

Ringtone Silences New York Philharmonic

It's a first in the cell-phone age

(Newser) - Usually, when something disturbs an orchestra performance, the New York Philharmonic's music director plays on. But an incessant iPhone ringtone during a concert this week forced Alan Gilbert to stop the show, the Wall Street Journal reports. The universally familiar "Marimba" tone kept playing during Mahler's 9th...

Your Call Center Helper Might Be an Inmate

Prisoners often staff centers in private and public sector

(Newser) - Talk to any prison inmates lately? The answer might be yes if you've called a call center for help or to register a complaint. MSNBC profiles a little-known but long-running federal program called Unicor under which inmates staff call centers in both the public and private sector. One example:...

Too Many Skyscrapers Often Spells Doom: Barclays

So look out India and China

(Newser) - Barclays Capital fears impending financial crises in China and India, based on ... skyscrapers. The tall buildings are linked to such crises, and China and India are building a lot of them, the investment bank explains in its annual Skyscraper Index. A "skyscraper building boom" often reflects "a widespread...

Suicide Suspected in Crossbow Killing
Suicide Suspected
in Crossbow Killing
Jan 11, 2012 12:01 AM CST

Suicide Suspected in Crossbow Killing

Michigan man found dead with arrow in chest

(Newser) - There hasn't been a homicide in the Michigan city of Howell for a decade, and cops who found a dead man with an arrow in his chest aren't sure if they're looking at one now. The 53-year-old man was found lying in a parking lot next to...

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